Mindanao still under ‘state of national emergency’

Even with the lifting of martial law, Mindanao remains under a “state of national emergency” under a 2016 proclamation which security forces could invoke to suppress violence, the military said.

In a statement late on Tuesday, Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesperson Brig. General Edgard Arevalo said President Duterte issued Proclamation 55 on Sept. 4, 2016, two days after the bombing of a night market in Davao City, which killed 14 people and wounded scores of others.

The proclamation directed the AFP and the Philippine National Police to “undertake such measures as may be permitted by the Constitution and existing laws to suppress any and all forms of lawless violence in Mindanao and to prevent such lawless violence from spreading and escalating elsewhere in the Philippines, with due regard to the fundamental civil and political rights of our citizens.”

It stated that the order would remain in force until it is lifted or withdrawn by the President.

Arevalo said the proclamation could be invoked by the military should “isolated incidents of violence and lawlessness erupt in Mindanao.”

The AFP spokesperson said the improved security climate in Mindanao now that could enhance investor confidence, which would boost economic activities in the region.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the objective of the two years and seven months of martial law in Mindanao has been achieved, noting that rebellion in Marawi, Lanao del Sur and other areas in the south had been stopped.

“They (security forces) are confident that they can maintain the current peace and order in Mindanao and that an attack similar in scale to Marawi cannot be waged by the remnants of the Mautes or by any other terrorist groups in the future,” he said.

Martial law was first declared on May 23, 2017 when the Islamic State-affiliated Maute group besieged Marawi City in a move to establish a caliphate in Mindanao.

It was extended from July 24 to Dec. 31, 2017. It was extended two more times until the end of 2019.

“For those who have openly issued statements of support for the extension of martial law, let me assure you that the AFP will continue to safeguard the hard-earned peace and stability in the region,” Lorenzana said, adding that the present number of troops there will be maintained.

PNP spokesperson Brig. Gen. Bernard Banac said in a statement that martial law enabled the government to gain a “solid foothold on some influenced and threatened communities” through military and police presence.

“In the process, the enemy was denied mass base support and room to maneuver and expand, rendering it immobile to some extent,” he pointed out.